A Raven in Vale
by JoeTheViking
Summary: A team of wanderers from outside the kingdoms find themselves entangled in Vale's internal struggles
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Welcome to Vale

Even with all the chaos over the past few months, the robberies by Roman Torchwick, the attacks by the White Fang, this was the strangest, most frightening sight to the people of Vale had witnessed this year. Walking down the the street in broad daylight were three large men and a tall fierce looking woman carrying archaic weapons and dressed in strange clothing.

The man tallest of the group was the leader. He wore a tunic he was uncomfortable in loose tan pants with a simple leather belt. Slipped into the belt was a bearded axe and a retractable round shield. Dark grey hair laid about his shoulders and his beard was braided on either cheek and his chin.

The man to the grey warrior's right, chatting with him in their harsh tongue, was slightly smaller with white hair and beard as well as a leather eye patch over his left eye. He wore a similar style pant to his larger companion, though green instead of tan, as well as a long chainmail shirt. He was using the long spear in his right hand as a walking stick.

Behind these two was a younger, graver looking man. He seemed lost in thought surveying his surroundings like one might if trying to judge if the neighborhood they are in is dangerous. His hair was brown and shorter than his older comrades, as was his beard. He too wore a chain shirt and on his belt was lashed a broad sword whose scabbard was slotted to fit the twin pistol barrels mounted just above the hilt. His steel plated boots clicked on the ground.

The final member of the party was obviously the youngest. Her copper hair was cropped short, and pulled into a short ponytail. She was as uncomfortable in the city as its inhabitants were with their presence. On her shoulder rested a maul and she was clad in leather armor that was inlaid with dust in intricate knot patterns and runes.

A few of the shop owners knew the older men in the team, as they had come to Vale often to trade. These warriors were Hänsmen, a tribe of humans and faunus who managed to survive outside the kingdoms. But never had these Hänsmen traveled so openly. They seemed to to be going with purpose, if a little lost.

"H-hey! You can't walk a-around here brandishing weapons like that! What do you think you're doing?"

The team stopped to see two very nervous Vale PD officers with hands on their guns.

The grave man spoke up first "Out of our way! We don't have time for this!"

The grey warrior turned around and shot a glance to the younger teammate that would have crumbled stone. The swordsman avoided the glance.

"Forgive our friend" the spearman said "He is young and unfamiliar with your customs."

The leader then turned around and spoke "We have been summoned by Ozpin and been given leave to travel to Beacon with our equipment. Here are our papers." He handed the cops the official papers requesting an audience with the team. The officer looked the papers over, the names of the team were listed, and just before he had a chance to ask, the grey haired man spoke again "I am Rook, the spearmen to my right is Yule" pointing to the grave looking man "That is Nemein and the woman behind him is Vasara."

The officer finished his inspection of the papers and handed them back, concluding everything was in order "RYVN eh? You guys, hunters or somethin?"

"I suppose we are the equivalent to hunters and huntresses" replied Yule "but if everything is well, we must be on our way." The officer nodded and the outsiders were on their way.

"This is not your first time to Vale, Nemein!" Scolded Yule in their tongue " that was foolish!"

"We are short on time, me must get to this Ozpin, we don't have time to delay." responded Nemein.

"Yes, but the city is on edge. They have been under attack from within and are afraid. We must bear this in mind and respect it."

Nemein did not reply.

Silence prevailed for a while, aside from Nemein's boots, until Rook spoke "Vasara, you have been quiet. How are you fairing in your first time in the kingdom?"

She was quiet for a moment, trying to put a finger on what made her so uncomfortable. "There are too many buildings and they are too tall. I can't see anything around us."

"One of the luxuries that high walls afford." Rook replied almost to himself.

The company went on for a while with silence as before. They made their way towards the platform where they would take a flight to Beacon that no-one was excited about. Then they met a delay.

A cry came from an alleyway followed by "You no good filthy beast, take this message to the White Fang!"

The team saw a young faunus boy laying on the ground, having been beaten, and a man was standing over him, aiming a kick at the boys head.

A dull thunk was heard as a maul was hastily tossed down and leaned against a wall. Vasara had pinned the attacker to the wall and was landing heavy blows to his body.

"YOU WANT TO ATTACK THE WEAK DO YOU?!" Vasara screamed.

Rook and Yule tore down the ally to stop Vasara and assist the injured reached the boy before Rook could haul his bulk to helped the boy up and tended his wounds.

Rook reached Vasara and was faced with the daunting task of controlling the immensely strong woman in a state of rage. Rook knew it would take far too long to pull her off.

"Vas! VASARA!"

The young warrior paid no heed. Rook took the next logical course of action and buried his fist in Vasara's diaphragm. Her strength sapped by the sudden evacuation of air from her lungs Rook removed her and chuckled, "You are much easier to handle when you're winded"

Yule had taken the boy from the alley to safety of the sidewalk and returned. Rook was looking upon the incapacitated man and muttered to himself "The luxury of high walls…"

Nemein took Vasara from the alley to get her breath back as Yule and Rook spoke.

"So what do we do with the fine specimen of city scum?" Yule spat.

"Vas beat him good, no less than the ignorant coward deserved, but Vas held back. She didn't do serious permanent damage, so I say leave the filth. Maybe when he gets up, Vas's lesson will have sunk in."

Yule shrugged "Fine by me. Let's get a move on and get that accursed airship ride over with."

**A.N.**

**Hi everyone! I'm new to FF and still getting used to it, so if there is anything I'm doing wrong please let me know! I hope you liked this first chapter, I've spent a long time pondering and editing it. I think the end result is...acceptable. But the next two chapters are much better I think. I'm not really a writer, I'm a musician and this story began as a creative exercise and it has become my primary hobby for over a month now! Please leave any feedback for me I'm excited to see what people think! Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: New Tidings

RYVN reached the airship platform just before the flight. Immediately the younger warriors began to pale at the sight of the Nemein had been to Vale before, only Rook and Yule had ever been on the airships before. Ozpin had employed the two older emissaries to clear grimm or scout their movement, and there was mutual respect from both parties. But the nomads had never gotten used to flying, and were only proficient at coping with the stress. The younger warriors, however, were not prepared. Yule's discomfort waned a little as he watched Nemein. The normally serious man Yule saw as a brother looked at the interior wall of the airship trying to convince himself that the window behind him wasn't real.

Just as Yule started to weigh the odds of Nemein puking, the low rumbling noise that is Rook's laugh caught Yule's attention. He turned and tried, unsuccessfully, to stifle his laughter. In the middle of the ship was Vasara, looking terrified of every little movement and sound the ship made; all while standing in a combat stance with her weapon brandished. The passengers looked frightened. Vasara's attention was turned from her fear to Yule by his laughter.

"Vas," Yule laughed. "Do you intend to slay the ship?"

Vasara became aware that her weapon was at the ready and sheepishly placed it, hammer head down, on the deck, "Uuuhh...no…" She mumbled some kind of apology but continued to look at the ship like she was convinced it was about to start spawning grimm.

The rest of the flight passed uneventfully. When the ship touched down at its destination Vasara and Nemein exited the ship with desperation, but there were no jokes or laughter from the older warriors. Long ago they had reached the limit of their comfort with flying and walked off the ship quickly, thankful for the feeling of solid ground.

There was a fat man waiting for them at the platform. From behind his bushy moustache he greeted the team in his usual bombastic way, "Greetings friends! I'm glad you caught your flight! Now, if you would just follow m-"

"A moment! My limbs are not yet sure they are on solid ground!" interrupted Nemein.

"My apologies. I forgot that you are not accustomed to flying. Please, take your time!" Came Peter Port's sincere apology.

A few minutes passed and the five were off, Port talking of exploits he thought worthy of telling, and the four Hänsmen mostly ignoring him.

They passed several groups of students who stared in wonder. Yule cleared his throat and addressed a question to their escort, "Do you happen to know why your boss wishes to see us? His message seemed urgent but gave no details."

"I do not, but it appears to me that something is bothering Ozpin. I do not know what though, I have been busy teaching the young huntsman and huntresses!" Port declared the last statement very proudly.

Not long after, they reached the door to Ozpin's office.

"Here you are! Ozpin is waiting, so go on in!" and with that, Port left.

Yule and Rook exchanged glances, they had been thinking on the news Peter had given them. It troubled them deeply. Nonetheless they opened the door to Ozpin's office.

"Punctual as always, I see. Oh! Two more have joined your team!" Ozpin sat behind his desk as his guests entered.

"We try," came Yule's response. "And our two new teammates are Nemein and Vasara."

Nemein slammed his fist to his chest in salute; Vasara just stared.

"We hear you are troubled," continued Yule, "as we suspected from your letter. So let's not waste time, what troubles you? As I suspect that is why we are summoned."

A quiet grunt from Rook alerted Yule that he was getting close to causing offense, but before Yule could say anything else, Ozpin spoke.

"Direct and to the point. I've always admired that quality of your people. But before I can answer your question, I must ask my own. Have you noticed anything strange about the grimm, specifically their movements, in the last few weeks?"

Nemein spoke up immediately. "I have. I had been keeping a close eye on our scouts' reports before we left to see you. They had been spotting grimm in greater numbers and more frequently, but passing us by in such a high percentage that we have faced fewer attacks than normal."

Ozpin pressed his hands together before his nose. "Hmmm," he mused, "did your scouts say where the grimm were going?"

"No," said Nemein. "The scouts were sure the grimm were passing us by and that was enough. No use in risking lives or discovery by following. What does this have to do with us?"

"I fear that moves are being made that could affect us both," said Ozpin gravely. "There have been a string of dust robberies and White Fang attacks that I cannot think are unrelated."

"Robbers and faunus rebels?" snapped Yule. "We aren't cops and we are not interested in your civil war!" Yule had more to say but he was stopped when Rook placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Excuse him, flying is hard on us, and has worn on our patience," said Rook in his slow fashion. "But Yule has a point, though hastily made. This does not seem like a job for us. You have police and your struggle with the White Fang isn't our fight. Anyways, I doubt fighting them would do you any good."

"I agree with you, and I was not going to ask you to fight them," said Ozpin. "But I would like you to watch their movements."

"Are you trying to trick us into war?" accused Vasara.

"No," replied Ozpin. "but I fear that if all I suspect is true, war will be thrust upon you."

"I assume that you're not going to share what you suspect," said Yule.

"You are correct, I do not wish to spread rumor, even if only to four trusted friends," replied Ozpin.

"That is well enough," said Yule sounding a little weary. "We have enough to worry ourselves about without adding conjecture to that list." Then Yule was silent for a while. He looked at Rook and the two seemed to have a silent conversation.

Yule spoke. "Give us two days. Then we will have decided."

"Two days?" Asked Ozpin.

"Aye, two days," Yule responded. "Today was a long march, a wearisome flight, and heavy news. We need rest. Then tomorrow we will go into your Emerald Forest and pick a fight to clear our minds. After we have slain our enemies, we will discuss our course of action. You will have your answer no later than the second night."

"Seems reasonable," said Ozpin. "Will you be staying in Beacon?"

Rook answered, "We will camp a fair distance from your buildings. That way we can sleep as we are accustomed and not disrupt your day to day. Plus it will put us closer to the forest."

Ozpin nodded.

"Then with your leave we will go make camp," said Yule.

Ozpin noticed with surprise that his room had begun to darken as the sun set. "Yes, that is fine. Good luck with your hunt."

Nemein grinned resting a hand on the sheath at his hip. "We don't need luck."

And with that, the four left.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: A Good Fight

The warriors set up camp far away from the campus, though students on the upper floors of the dorms could see the camp fire. The nomads all set up their small tents and brought out their weapon maintenance gear. As everyone else began to work on their equipment, Rook took off his tunic and stretched, making the myriad of scars that crisscrossed his body stand out.

"Ahhhh! Much better," sighed Rook. "I hated wearing that all day." He sat down next to Nemein and began to inspect his gear.

Nemein ejected the twin, dual round, cylinders that flanked the hilt of his sword and was meticulously cleaning them and the matching barrels and firing mechanisms.

Yule, having already sharpened and oiled his spear, was working on the hidden compartments that paralleled the flats of the spear and opened just under the spear socket. He had the opening mechanism, located towards the middle of the haft, locked open and was carefully pouring lightning dust into the twin compartments. Once they were filled, he poured a very small amount of dust on to his hand and wiped his hand over either side of the spear, making small bolts dance across it. Yule grinned, this so-called priming technique he had discovered made the dust activate quicker and the bolts a little more predictable. He planted the spear, spear point up, into the ground and then turned his attention to his chainmail.

Vasara was carefully inspecting all the runes that were etched and infused into the head of her maul. Her armor was set on a makeshift armor rack, a spare tent pole with a crossbeam for the shoulders to rest on, and the maintenance equipment hung underneath.

A few hours passed and the team ate a portion of the food they had brought. Rook had just reassembled the newly cleaned and oiled firing mechanism and shell exchange system for the internal shotgun in his axe. He was cycling shells through it when Vasara looked up from her armor.

"So what do you think about this job?" she asked. "I know we are taking time to think about it, but I know you must have some idea."

Rook looked up from his weapon, catching a shell he had just ejected, and looked at the young warrior. Vasara held his gaze, unsure of whether he was trying to search her thoughts or look for the best way to express his.

"I am not sure which possibility frightens me more," he said almost slower than usual. "Ozpin lying to us, or being entirely truthful."

"But even if he is telling the truth, that doesn't mean he's right," posited Nemein.

"True," responded Yule. "But from our experience with Ozpin, he doesn't seem to put forth information unless he is sure it is true, even if he doesn't say as much. I'm not saying he can't be wrong, but I wouldn't count on it."

The camp fell into silence, then Rook spoke. "Don't worry about this matter now. We are tired and our judgement will be skewed. Let's get some rest, tomorrow we fight!" Rook grinned and his team followed suit.

They set no watch. No grimm or criminal would dare go into the flat open grounds of Beacon, even at night. So the entire team slept without worry.

Rook awoke first, made sure the fire was out, then double checked the the internal magazine in his axe. He fastened his belt and looked at the shadows on the ground, guessing that it was about 8 am.

"Alright, alright," he rumbled. "Get up and get ready. It's time to go teach some grimm to fear the Hänsmen!"

In a few minutes, the team was ready to go. They left all their non-combat gear and supplies by the ashes of the fire and set off into the forest.

They hiked for hours silently, Nemein's boots silenced by the soft ground.

Something caught Nemein's eye: odd, well hidden, scratch marks around a slightly raised bunch of leaves. He stooped and carefully brushed the leaves away, revealing a single fine thread.

Nemein grinned. "Look at this."

Yule came up next to Nemein and examined the find. "A sentinel thread," he said. "the perimeter watch system of a nest of Shelob."

"We found our fight!" said a smiling Rook. "Can you tell which way it leads?"

Nemein search the ground a while longer. "Yes, I think I can see their network of threads. It is new, and their attempt to hide it hasn't had time to settle yet. Subtle, but not subtle enough."

"Good," said Yule. "Sever the cord and let's go."

"Why?" asked Vasara.

"These chords tell the Shelob the size and location of creatures around the land they claim. That's why the thread is laid on the ground," explained Nemein. "But if the cord does slack..." He drew his sword and severed the thread. "...then they will get suspicious, and will be drawn out to face us in combat."

Vasara grinned, pleased with this plan.

The team marched forward, occasionally severing a thread as they went. They came into a clearing and paused.

A grin passed over Nemein's face. "I think our hosts have come out to greet their guests."

A low hiss and the sound of rustling was heard. Out from the trees in front of the warriors descended many enormous black spiders with white fangs, claws and stingers. Elaborate red markings completed the standard grimm look. On the other side of the clearing more of the spider grimm scurried up and surrounded the warriors. The beasts had noticed the cut threads and had flanked and surrounded their prey.

Yule and Vasara readied their weapons, Nemein drew his sword, and Rook's shield made its distinct "ping" as it suddenly took its full shape.

His axe was already in his hand.

Several of the Shelob charged from all sides. The lead Shelob lept at Nemein. Even though the beasts were very fast, Nemein's blade was faster, keener, and Nemein was well versed in the combat styles of grimm. His blade cleaved the beasts head deeply, killing it.

The beast behind Nemein's slain foe had chosen to stay on its eight legs and had closed on Nemein. It lunged, fangs first, forcing Nemein to leap out of the way, straight up. The fangs struck empty space where Nemein once was. Nemein landed on the head of his new foe, steel plated boots driving it into the ground. A sword stroke finished the beast.

To Nemein's left, Vasara was creating a field of devastation. She had planted her maul in the center of her foe, the runes in the maul glowing. The next Shelob got its head caved in in midair during a jump attack. Vasara's foes expected that any warrior wielding such an enormous weapon would be slowed by its bulk. But she swung the weapon as if it was hardly heavier than a sword.. The Shelob were not expecting the speed of Vasara, so their attempt to overwhelm her ended in piles of dissolving bodies.

Behind her Yule was teaching the Shelob to fear lightning. As they charged him, Yule made arching horizontal swings, opening the dust hatch as he did so. The dust leapt forth as lightning and ran cross the steel spear tip towards oncoming spiders. Bolts entered the beasts through joints and eyes, and they were fried from within. The slain beasts just slumped to the ground. The next wave of grimm were too close for Yule to use his dust on, so he dispatched them at spear point. But any time there was distance between himself and a foe, lightning lept forth to close that gap.

To the right of Yule fought the shirtless Rook. He fought in much the same way he spoke, slowly and with great purpose. His first opponent fell when he pointed his axe at it and depressed the trigger on axe haft. The end of the haft roared to life sending forth a slug that eviscerated its target. Before that grimm had even hit the ground another was assailing Rook. It had timed and aimed its jump perfectly to land right on top of Rook. Rook, in response, lifted his shield and activated his semblance.

His leathery scarred skin turn the color of stone. The Shelob that collided with the raised shield felt like it had landed on a great pillar of stone, much to its shock. It fell back and Rook, even slower now than he normally was, brought his axe down on the creature with such force that even the haft of the axe smashed into his foe.

Another assault started from the left. Long legs reached around Rook's shield and tried to lacerate his back with their sharp claws, but this proved ineffective against Rook's stone skin. Rook severed a leg and, when the Shelob recoiled in pain, he drove his shield through his wounded foe's head.

The battle wore on, and if grimm did not dissolve so quickly, the bodies would have made the field of battle difficult to traverse.

As the last beast was slain the sound of falling trees was heard.

"Well. We're going to get an audience with the queen." Nemein joked flatly.

At that moment the queen Shelob burst into the clearing. Her children were horse sized, enormous in their own right, but she made them look tiny. The size of a full grown Nevermore, she was fell sight to behold.

"Vasara! Step back and show her your wrath!" commanded Rook. Then, to Nemein and Yule, he said "Flank it. Keep its attention on us until Vas smites it, and if it still stands. Finish it."

Rook stood in front of the giant grimm as his team took their positions.

The attack was ferocious. Blows stumbled Rook and were difficult for Nemein and Yule to evade. They harried the beast constantly, shotgun blast here, vengeful lightning there, and Nemein emptied all four of his rounds into the creature's legs.

Vasara, in the mean time, stood ten yards behind her comrades; eyes closed, the end of maul haft touching the the ground as she rotated the weapon in her hands. The runes were growing to a blinding bright light and dark clouds began to form. Her eyes snapped open, and they too were glowing.

She stopped spinning the maul and thrust it forward. There was a clap of thunder and a giant arrow shaped bolt of lightning shot from the weapon and crashed into the Shelob queen.

It shrieked as its eyes all burst and fluid burst from all its joints, and it slumped down.

Yule and Nemein charged.

Yule lept into the air and drove his spear downward through one of the now empty eye sockets. Nemein slid under the Shelob and buried his blade up to the hilt in its unprotected underbelly.

The queen and her entire nest were destroyed. The tired warriors began their journey back to Beacon and their campsite in the high spirits only glory in battle can provide.

**A.N. **

**My first attempt at combat writing and I am very fond of how that worked out! So this is the last chapter I have that is ready to post, but I have up to chapter 6 written. 4 is typed up and is being edited (though my primary editing help is caught up with UCLA midterms so idk when I'll be comfortable posting chapter 4) and chapters 5 and 6 are written on a notepad and are ready to be typed up. I hope you liked the start to this story. I would love to receive any feedback you have to give, and thanks again for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Debate

The four warriors returned to their camp joking, laughing, and bragging loudly. They had been gone for about nine hours so food was their primary concern as they approached their camp. They sat down and passed around various roots, berries, and dried meats. After the meal was finished, attention was turned to the deliberation at hand.

Rook reached into his pack and pulled out a large water skin. He uncorked it and the smell of mead permeated about the camp. He poured everyone a tankard full "We have earned this" he rumbled gladly, "but now to the work before us."

He paused to look and consider each member of his team. "We must first decide if we believe Ozpin."

Yule turned to Nemein "You had much to say about Ozpin's question and your answers seemed to be very significant to him. What do you think?"

This very thing had been weighing on Nemein's mind. He still wasn't sure what he thought of it, so he shared his current thoughts "Shelob are from the thick forests of the North. In all the years I spent as a scout I've never seen them outside of those dense woodlands." He paused "Something must be drawing them here. I don't know if they felt something, or if they decided to follow the grimm they noticed leaving their borders, but—"

At that moment a the caw of a bird was was heard. The team turned to see a great black raven flying their way.

"Huginn!" cried Yule. The one-eyed warrior leapt up and raised his arm. The bird landed on Yule's arm and nuzzled the hand that stroked it's head.

"You've flown a long way my friend!" Yule said to the bird, "What brings you here?"

The bird reached its head under its wing and pulled out a note and gave it to Yule.

Yule took the note and gave Huginn some berries in return. The raven devoured the berries hungrily.

Yule bundled up some seeds and berries from their supplies and gave the bundle to the bird, "Here, find a place to eat and rest."

The bird hopped to the ground and then hopped several paces away, as if to give the humans privacy.

Yule read the note silently, "Our kin are moving. Grimm have been spotted from the camp but have not attacked. From what the scouts report it sounds like the grimm are headed towards the kingdom. But the elders expect enough of the tribe will start to worry about this to provoke attacks. So they are making their way to the hunting grounds now." Yule paused, "This would seem to confirm what Nemein expected, the grimm are being drawn to the kingdom's borders. Some great fear or malice is at work here."

"But that doesn't have anything to do with the radical faunus." interjected Vasara.

"True, but look at our trip through the city." countered Nemein "That man attacked the faunus boy believing that he was a part of the White Fang simply because the boy was faunus. Tensions are obviously high. Also, while you beat the living shit out of that scum, I spotted some newspapers talking about rising dust robbery rates. So that part of Ozpin's story is true."

"So it seems" said Rook, "however that does not mean his whole story is true"

"Why would he deceive us?" Asked Yule rhetorically.

"For extra strength in battle!" answered Vasara "He knows of our reputation as fierce warriors and wants an edge in this conflict."

"But we do not fight wars that do not concern us" responded Nemein, "this he should also know. It wouldn't be the first time we've walked away from a fight some fool thought he could trick us into."

The company sat in silence for a while.

"I do not think that Ozpin is trying to deceive us." Yule started slowly, "I think he has told us what he, at the very least, believes to be true. He is not foolish or arrogant enough to try and trick us." Everyone noded in agreement

"Then the other thing that remains to be determined is what our course of action will be." Rook declared.

"Well if the White Fang is behind these robberies, then they are militarizing. So why doesn't Vale just smash them?" blurted Vasara.

"Vasara, the White Fang have a legitimate claim of unjustified hatred against faunus that needs to be be addressed." Rook rumbled, trying to calm the brash young warrior, "Their methods are wrong, but that does not call for them to be annihilated."

"Plus I caught a name associated with the dust robberies, some Torchwick person. And there was no mention of him being a faunus." Nemein added.

"Considering the state the city seems to be in, I find it doubtful that newspapers would neglect faunus heritage if it were there." Said Rook

"Odd, if they have a suspect, why would Ozpin suspect the White Fang?" mused Yule

"Well let's try and guess what Ozpin suspects" said Vasara, "If this Torchwick isn't a faunus then why would the White Fang be associating with him?"

"I see two possibilities." said Yule, "Either the White Fang no long really cares about faunus rights, or this man has the demeanor or enough valuable skills or resources for the White Fang to be willing work with him and vice versa."

"Troublesome either way" mused Rook.

"If they aren't fighting for faunus rights, what is their motive?" Nemein asked.

"I suspect that is what Ozpin would like to know." Rook answered.

The camp sat in silent thought as the sun set.

Nemein took a deep draft of his mead and then said "We're here and all signs point to some trouble brewing. Furthermore, that something has caused our kin to move, ahead of our normal migration pattern. So it has already affected us, I say we affect it back."

The responses to this came much slower than their agreement to Ozipin's sincerity. But they agreed nonetheless.

"You two stay here, rest and watch the camp" ordered Yule "I do not think we should sleep without watch from now on."

Yule got up, grabbed his spear, and made his way towards the school grounds with Rook.

Huginn flew onto Yule's shoulder and joined them.

Several minutes into their walk Yule looked at Rook and laughed "You forgot to throw on a tunic! You'll upset the children."

"Nonsense! Who wouldn't want to see such a fine example of a man?"

Yule broke into hearty laughter "We shall find out!"

The two reached Ozpin's office in short order. Unhindered by the stares Rook's scarred body and the proud raven drew.

They didn't bother knocking and walked straight in. Ozpin was waiting for them at his desk.

"Did the hunt go well?"

Rook Grinned "We wiped out some new neighbors of yours. An entire Shelob nest, queen and all."

Ozpin was troubled by the knowledge that Shelob had come down to the forest outside of his school, but hid it well. "It came to my attention while you were gone that you had a smaller skirmish on your way to Beacon."

"Vasara is young and impulsive. Though she wasn't born into our kin, our customs are the only ones she knows." defended Yule "That kind of filth is a threat to our very existence outside the walls. I hope this did not cause you much grief, but understand that we are not sorry. We would have stepped in even if Vas had not."

Ozpin was intrigued "But wouldn't her outbursts of anger attract grimm? It was my understanding that your tribe's long success came in large part from your joy in combat."

"Yes, that is true" responded Yule "and that, in small part, is why she is with us. To learn to control herself more, and soothe the elders' concerns."

"Bah!" Rook thundered angrily, "She is here because she is a great warrior and with time, will learn to be just as skilled in the negotiation side of being an emissary! She was never a threat to the tribe, she can slay ten times the grimm she could ever attract!"

Yule placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, "We did not come to discuss our politics" he looked at Ozpin, "We've come to offer our help."

Ozpin grinned, "I'm glad to hear that. Would you like to know the details of your mission now, or are you weary from battle?"

Having mastered his anger, Rook responded with a grin, "Battle does not tire us, let us hear what you would have us do!"

A/N: I've been waiting to release this until my editor can give it a look over. But she has not been able to to find the time to look this chapter over. So I've read this chapter over several times, hopefully I caught any and all mistakes or weirdness. If I missed anything please let me know.


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